How to Report a Scam — FTC, FBI IC3, and the Ohio Attorney General
Published October 2026 · Last verified October 2026
After a scam, reporting it feels like one more confusing chore. It doesn't have to be. This is a plain, step-by-step guide to exactly where to report — the FTC, the FBI, and the Ohio Attorney General — what to say, and why your few minutes genuinely help, even when the money is gone.
After a scam, reporting it feels like one more confusing chore. It doesn't have to be. This is a plain, step-by-step guide to exactly where to report — the FTC, the FBI, and the Ohio Attorney General — what to say, and why your few minutes genuinely help, even when the money is gone.
What's inside this guide
The printable PDF walks through 23 short chapters, in plain language. It also includes an everyday cheat sheet and at-a-glance pictures.
- Why Bother Reporting?
- Before You Start — Gather the Basics
- The FTC — Your First Stop
- The FBI's IC3 — For Online Crime
- The Ohio Attorney General
- IdentityTheft.gov
- Reporting Scam Calls and Texts
- Reporting to the Company Impersonated
- Reporting a Romance or Investment Scam
- Reporting Medicare or Health Fraud
- Keeping a Scam Journal
- Warning Your Community
- What Investigators Do With Reports
- What Happens After You Report
- Local Police and When to Involve Them
- Reporting for Someone Else
- The One Report Not to Trust
- Questions People Ask Me
- If a Scam Hit Your Business
- A Simple Reporting Checklist
- Reporting It — and Why It Helps
- When to Just Call Me
- Contact Card & a Warm Close
Get the printable guide
Everything above is a quick summary. The full, printable guide — the same words, laid out to read and keep by the computer — is a free PDF.
Last verified October 2026. Information accurate as of October 25, 2026.
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